Cranberry Limeade
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Once in a while, Trader Joe's has a great deal on limes; you can get a whole one pound bag for 99 cents. I'll buy a bag with the best of intentions to put them to good use, but then most recipes that use lime only call for one. Not the 10 that are in the bag. Unfortunately, limes don't have the shelf life that we enjoy with lemons. A lime's peel turns yellow and then brown fairly quickly, and limes tend to dry out sooner than you would expect (compared to lemons). Here is a zesty summer drink you can easily make with those extra limes. Limeade itself can be rather tart (though alone it is still one of my favorite drinks); adding a bit of cranberry juice, sour cherry, or pomegranate juice, can take the edge off the lime while adding another dimension of flavor. I'm thinking this one would also make a great juice popsicle.
Cranberry Limeade
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Ingredients
- 1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (about 4-8 limes, depending on how juicy they are)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cranberry juice (if you use sweetened cranberry juice, reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe a little bit)
- Simple syrup made with 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water
- An additional 1 1/2 cups water
- Ice
Method
1 Heat 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water in a small saucepan; bring to a boil so that the sugar is completely dissolved, and remove from heat. If you want an added zing to your limeade, zest a couple of the limes before juicing and add the zest to the sugar water while it's heating. Once the syrup has cooled, strain out the zest with a fine mesh strainer before using.
2 While your simple syrup is cooling, juice the limes.
3 Add lime juice, cranberry juice, 1 1/2 cups of cold water, the simple syrup, and a few ice cubes to a serving pitcher. Depending on when and how the limeade is to be served, and how strong you want it, you can add more ice and water. For example, if you want to serve it right away, and it is still a bit warm from the hot simple syrup, add lots of ice. If it has had a chance to cool down and chill in the refrigerator, but is still too strong, add a bit more water until the strength is to your preference.
If the cranberry limeade is too sweet for your taste, add some more lime juice and water until you reach your desired level of sweetness, and use less sugar the next time you make it.
Makes about one quart.
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I love limeaid - nice idea to add the cranberry to it...pretty drink, very healthy!
I got to discover Trader Joe's on my last trip to the U.S. What a fun place!